Detailed Explanation of Key Points for High-Yield Cultivation Techniques of Amomum villosum

Amomum villosum, also known as Yangchun amomum or Yangchun sha. It is a perennial herbaceous plant of the Zingiberaceae family. The fruit and seeds are used as medicine, and it has the effects of promoting qi flow, warming the middle, strengthening the stomach and aiding digestion, and preventing miscarriage. Clinically it is mainly used to treat symptoms such as acid reflux, distension and pain, and loss of appetite. The main producing areas include Guangxi, Guangdong, Yunnan, Fujian and other provinces and regions.

Morphological Characteristics

1. Yangchun amomum: A perennial herb, 1.2-2 m tall. The rhizome is cylindrical, creeping horizontally, with nodes, and sheath-like scales on the nodes; the stem is upright and unbranched. Leaves are arranged in two rows, sessile, with lanceolate blades, the apex having a tail-like fine point, the base gradually narrowing, entire margins, hairless on both surfaces or sometimes with fine hairs on the lower surface; the ligule is 2-3 mm long, brownish red or sometimes green; sunken square-grid reticulate patterns can be seen on the leaf sheath. The spike inflorescence is borne on a short scape emerging from the rhizome. The peduncle is 4-6 cm; the perianth segments are white, and the labellum is white with yellow, red, and purple spots. The capsule does not dehisce, is spherical or oblong, about 5 cm in diameter, with unbranched soft spines, and turns brownish red when ripe; seeds are numerous and extremely aromatic.

2. Green-shell amomum: The external morphology of this variety is very similar, except that the buds at the tip of the rhizome and the ligule are mostly green, and the fruit is also green when ripe.

3. Hainan amomum: The plant is 1-1.5 m tall, with linear-lanceolate leaf blades, petiolate, the petiole 0.5 cm long, the apex with a long tail-like point, the base cuneate, hairless on both surfaces; the ligule is 2-4.5 cm long, brownish yellow, membranous, hairless. The spike inflorescence is smaller than that of Yangchun amomum, elliptical; the calyx is slightly smaller than that of Yangchun amomum; the capsule is ovoid, about 0.8-1.2 cm in diameter, covered with flaky, branched short soft spines; the seeds are irregularly block-shaped.

I. Growth Habits: Amomum villosum prefers high temperature and humidity and a half-shaded, half-sunny environment. It is afraid of drought and cold. The flowering period is April to June; the fruiting period is August to October. It has low requirements for soil, with loam or clay being preferable.

II. Land Preparation and Fertilization: Choose a back-slope hillside plot with deep soil, loose and fertile texture, and half shade and half sun, and cultivate it carefully. In combination with land preparation, apply sufficient basal fertilizer: 3000 kg of farmyard manure, 20 kg of urea, and 50 kg of phosphorus-potassium fertilizer per mu. Then make raised beds 1.5 m high and wait for sowing.

III. Sowing: Amomum villosum is propagated by seeds and by division. The sowing period can be autumn sowing or spring sowing. Spring sowing is around Qingming, and autumn sowing is around Shuangjiang. Seed propagation: Sow amomum seeds in holes at a row spacing of 20 x 20 cm on the prepared bed surface. Water to preserve soil moisture and promote survival. Seedlings can emerge in about 20 days. After the seedlings are fully established, strengthen field management. When the seedlings are 50 cm tall, transplant them at a row spacing of 1 x 1 m on the prepared bed surface, water to preserve soil moisture, and promote survival. Division propagation: Select tender rhizomes with 1-2 nodes from superior plants as planting material, plant them at a row spacing of 1 x 1 m on the prepared bed surface, water to preserve soil moisture, and promote survival.

IV. Field Management: After the amomum seedlings are fully established, attention should be paid to intertillage and weeding. Water immediately in dry weather, and drain promptly in rainy weather. Apply topdressing once each year: 3000 kg of farmyard manure, 10 kg of urea, and 5 kg of phosphorus-potassium fertilizer per mu. The second time, in winter, spread a layer of farmyard manure on the bed surface to prevent cold and keep warm. Amomum villosum prefers a half-shaded, half-sunny environment. In addition to selecting suitable field plots, methods such as artificial pollination or introducing insect pollination should also be used to increase amomum yield. Chemical pesticides are strictly prohibited during the flowering period.

V. Pest and Disease Control: The main diseases of amomum are seedling leaf spot and seedling anthracnose, which can be controlled by spraying 50% Topsin 1000 solution or 80% anthracnose preparation 800-fold solution in the early stage of the disease. During the occurrence period, spray with Fuji No. 1 600-fold solution for control.

VI. Harvesting and Processing: Amomum villosum can be harvested in autumn after the fruit turns purplish red and the seeds turn brownish black. After harvesting, place it in a drying room and first cure it at 90-100°C for 2-3 hours to kill the green. After it cools and the fruit shrinks, dry it again at 80°C, and then it can be sold as medicine.